In Cinemas this week (27 July – 2 August)

The Dark Knight Rises

It has been eight years since Batman vanished into the night, turning, in that instant, from hero to fugitive. Assuming the blame for the death of D.A. Harvey Dent, the Dark Knight sacrificed everything for what he and Commissioner Gordon both hoped was the greater good. For a time the lie worked, as criminal activity in Gotham City was crushed under the weight of the anti-crime Dent Act. But everything will change with the arrival of a cunning cat burglar with a mysterious agenda. Far more dangerous, however, is the emergence of Bane, a masked terrorist whose ruthless plans for Gotham drive Bruce out of his self-imposed exile. But even if he dons the cape and cowl again, Batman may be no match for Bane.

Cast:
Christian Bale (Bruce Wayne)
Gary Oldman (Commissioner Gordon)
Michael Caine (Alfred)
Morgan Freeman (Fox)

Director: Christopher Nolan
Writer: Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan
Runtime: 164 min
Genre: Action, Drama, Thriller
Rating: 12
Language: English
Production Year: 2012

The Dictator

Haffaz Aladeen is the bizarre dictator of the oil-rich African nation of Wadiya. Aladeen is as egotistical and ruthless as dictators come, executing anyone who disagrees with him by using his signature “head chop” signal. Aladeen is summoned to New York to a UN assembly to address concerns about his country’s nuclear weapons program, but the trip goes awry.

Cast:
Sacha Baron Cohen (Aladeen / Efawadh)
Ben Kingsley (Tamir)
Anna Faris (Zoey)
Megan Fox

Director: Larry Charles
Writer: Sacha Baron Cohen, Alec Berg
Runtime: 83 min
Genre: Comedy
Rating: 15
Language: English
Production Year: 2012

The Lucky One

U.S. Marine Sergeant Logan Thibault returns from his third tour of duty in Iraq, with the one thing he credits with keeping him alive – a photograph he found of a woman he doesn’t even know. Discovering her name is Beth and where she lives, he shows up at her door, and ends up taking a job at her family-run local kennel. Despite her initial mistrust and the complications in her life, a romance develops between them, giving Logan hope that Beth could be much more than his good luck charm.

Cast:
Zac Efron (Logan)
Taylor Schilling (Beth)
Blythe Danner (Ellie)
Riley Thomas Stewart (Ben)

Director: Scott Hicks
Writer: Will Fetters, Nicholas Sparks
Runtime: 101 min
Genre: Drama
Rating: K
Language: English
Production Year: 2012

The Amazing Spider-Man 3D

Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today. Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy, and together, they struggle with love, commitment, and secrets. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents’ disappearance – leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr Curt Connors, his father’s former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors’ alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

Cast:
Andrew Garfield (Spider-Man / Peter Parker)
Emma Stone (Gwen Stacy)
Rhys Ifans (The Lizard / Dr. Curt Connors)
Denis Leary (Captain Stacy)

Director: Marc Webb
Writer: James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent
Runtime: 136 min
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Rating: 12
Language: English
Production Year: 2012

Haywire

Freelance covert operative Mallory Kane is hired out by her handler to various global entities to perform jobs which governments can’t authorize and heads of state would rather not know about. After a mission to rescue a hostage in Barcelona, Mallory is quickly dispatched on another mission to Dublin. When the operation goes awry and Mallory finds she has been double crossed, she needs to use all of her skills, tricks and abilities to escape an international manhunt, make it back to the United States, protect her family, and exact revenge on those that have betrayed her.

Cast:
Ewan McGregor (Kenneth)
Gina Carano (Mallory Kane)
Michael Fassbender (Paul)
Michael Douglas (Coblenz)

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Writer: Lem Dobbs
Runtime: 93 min
Genre: Action, Thriller
Rating: 15
Language: English
Production Year: 2011

Ice Age: Continental Drift

Scrat’s nutty pursuit of the cursed acorn, which he’s been after since the dawn of time, has world-changing consequences – a continental cataclysm that triggers the greatest adventure of all for Manny, Diego and Sid. In the wake of these upheavals, Sid reunites with his cantankerous Granny, and the herd encounters a ragtag menagerie of seafaring pirates determined to stop them from returning home.

Voices:
John Leguizamo/Petros Philippides (Sid)
Jennifer Lopez/Marina Tsigonaki (Shira)
Denis Leary/Leonidas Kakouris (Diego)
Ray Romano/Giannis Bezos (Manny)

Director: Steve Martino, Mike Thurmeier
Writer: Michael Berg, Jason Fuchs
Runtime: 94 min
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Rating: K
Language: English/Greek
Production Year: 2012

What to Expect When You’re Expecting

The lives of five couples are turned upside down by the challenges of impending parenthood. Over the moon about starting a family, TV fitness guru Jules and dance show star Evan find that their high-octane celebrity lives don’t stand a chance against the surprise demands of pregnancy. Baby-crazy author and advocate Wendy gets a taste of her own militant mommy advice when pregnancy hormones ravage her body; while Wendy’s husband, Gary, struggles not to be outdone by his competitive alpha-Dad, who’s expecting twins with his much younger trophy wife, Skyler. Photographer Holly is prepared to travel the globe to adopt a child, but her husband Alex isn’t so sure, and tries to quiet his panic by attending a “dudes” support group, where new fathers get to tell it like it really is. And rival food truck chefs Rosie and Marco’s surprise hook-up results in an unexpected quandary: what to do when your first child comes before your first date?

Cast:
Cameron Diaz (Jules)
Jennifer Lopez (Holly)
Dennis Quaid (Ramsey)
Chris Rock (Vic)

Director: Kirk Jones
Writer: Shauna Cross, Heather Hach
Runtime: 110 min
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Rating: K
Language: English
Production Year: 2012

Snow White and the Huntsman

Snow White is the only person in the land fairer than the evil queen. Unable to tolerate the insult to her vanity, the evil queen decides that Snow White must die. The queen sends a huntsman to kill Snow White. However the huntsman finds himself unable to murder the innocent young woman, and instead ends up training her to become a warrior capable of threatening the queen’s reign.

Cast:
Kristen Stewart (Snow White)
Chris Hemsworth (The Huntsman)
Charlize Theron (Ravenna)
Ian McShane (Beith)

Director: Rupert Sanders
Writer: Evan Daugherty, John Lee Hancock
Runtime: 127 min
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama
Rating: 12
Language: English
Production Year: 2012